Gaetano Donizetti - Lucia di Lammermoor - Netrebko, Beczala - Armiliato 20092*DVD9 - NTSC - 16:9 - All Regions - PCM, DTS - 142 min.
Subtitles: Italian/German/English/French/Spanish/Chinese
Deutsche Grammophon 073 4526 9
Lucia: Anna Netrebko, Edgardo: Piotr Beczala, Lord Enrico Ashton: Mariusz Kwiecien, Raimondo: Ildar Abdrazakov, Alisa: Michaela Martens, Arturo: Colin Lee, Normanno: Michael Myers
Metropolitan Opera
Conductor: Marco Armiliato
"Anna Netrebko back from maternity leave is still beautiful though. ... Her voice is richer. ... Regardless, her fulsome sound dictates her approach to one of opera’s seminal roles. She accentuates the dramatic characteristics of the doomed Lucia. Her approach downplays the runs and high notes that typify the usual portrayal of this role. Her Lucia is most like Callas’s. Her vocal and physical beauty combined with her great strength as an actress made her a powerful and moving heroine. It was a great performance.
Roland Villazon was scheduled to sing Edgardo. He sang two performances in this run with Netrebko and then withdrew because of “illness.”...
He was replaced by the Polish tenor Piotr Beczala. Beczala made his Met debut as the Duke in Rigoletto at the end of 2006. He sang Edgardo with Diana Damrau in seven Lucias last October. This performance was his 13th with the company. A lucky number as things turned out. The 42 year old tenor (he looks 10 years younger) has a focused lyric tenor that is secure throughout its range. His singing was lovely and was well received. The opera’s concluding scene which is essential one long solo for the tenor was well sung and moving. It was tough having to follow such an effective Mad Scene, yet he managed to capture the audience’s attention. Edgardo is about as demanding a role as he should sing. If he stays in the lyric repertoire he can have a major career."
On DVD2 are Act 3 and some interviews, backstage made by Natalie Dessay.
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